Traders in the XRP community are sounding the alarm after a massive transfer of tokens linked to Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen. According to on-chain sleuth ZachXBT, Larsen moved around $175 million worth of XRP between July 17 and 24 and a significant chunk of that, around $140 million, appears to have been sent to crypto exchanges.
That’s raised eyebrows across the board.
What’s the Concern?
In crypto, when a big holder moves assets to an exchange, it’s often a red flag that they’re preparing to sell. And while no direct sale has been confirmed, the timing doesn’t look great: XRP dropped 8% on July 24, hitting a weekly low of $2.99. The token also slipped below its 4-hour moving average, prompting even more speculation among traders.
Of course, it’s not just XRP that’s feeling the pressure. The broader crypto market has been in a bit of a slump this week, so it’s hard to pin the entire drop on this one move. But still, the optics aren’t great.
Community Reaction
Crypto Twitter didn’t take long to react. Some users began questioning how decentralized XRP really is, considering such a large stash of tokens is still under the control of insiders like Larsen.
ZachXBT added more fuel to the fire by pointing out that wallets linked to Larsen still hold over 2.81 billion XRP currently valued at roughly $8.4 billion. That’s a huge amount of potential selling pressure that could hit the market at any time.
And once those tokens land in centralized exchanges? They’re essentially untraceable until a sale happens.
So, What’s Next?
While there’s no official word from Larsen or Ripple, the situation highlights a lingering tension in the XRP community: the influence insiders still have over price movements. Even if Larsen isn’t selling immediately, the market is watching closely and the fear of a bigger selloff isn’t going away.
For now, all eyes are on the remaining billions in those wallets and what their next move might be.
